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Suriname, Paramaribo, 06 – 13 June 2023.

Posted on Tuesday, 13-June-2023 by Chris Desmond

Georgetown to Paramaribo – It took an hour to get out of Georgetown and then another 45 minutes to the airport cost US$50 again. I had to show my Yellow Fever card, Covid vaccination certificate and my Surinam Visa print out, they insist you have a paper copy. This is the first and only country where I have had to show proof of my Covid vaccinations. Suriname insists that you have an up to date vaccination which means no more than 270 days old. The President of India was visiting and her aircraft was waiting, all lit up at the airport. Taxi from the airport to Paramaribo was US$40 and took 1:15 hours, we had to pull over and wait while the Presidential convoy went past us to the airport. I immediately noticed the better roads, there is actually a highway from the airport to the city.

On the way to the Airport

Bridge across the river

On the way to the Airport

Georgetown Airport

Inside

The view

Rivers

Flight originated in Miami

President of India visiting Suriname

This is one of the nicer countries in the Caribbean, the official language is Dutch, everyone speaks English as well. Broad streets with fewer pot holes, pavements for pedestrians and very little rubbish lying around, it is also cheaper than the islands. The population is equally divided between people of Indian, Indonesian and African descent, this means there is a variety of food available, climate hot (+30c) and humid (+80%) much the same as the Islands. And I actually managed to find a tour to a tourist plantation with a small museum. There are the usual minibusses for public transport which cost a dollar a ride or a taxi for $5, it is a walkable city if you can stand the heat and humidity. I bought a one month SIM card for US$10.

The Man

Helstone Monument and Centrumkerk

The Bridge

Indian Immigration Monument

War

High Court

Presidential Palace

Nice

Ginger drink

The yellow thing is Evil

The Local Drop 500ml

Korean War

Minibus

Indian Immigration Monument

Fort Zeelandia

Hospital beds

Pharmacy

The Fort

Doctor

History

Slavery

Fort Walls

Hsitory

9000 years ago

Queen Wilhemina

Inside the Fort

Cannon

Ancient

The Man

Suriname

The Crest

Government

Church

Jetty

Boats

The Local Drop 500ml

Chicken and Roti

The Altar

Inside all Wood

Thunderstorm

MArket

Roti

Deadly

Market

On the Street

Palmtree Garden

Freedom Fighter

Janey Tetary

Ancient

Mosque next door

Synagogue

Palmtree Garden

Bridge Mural

Ginger Drink

Nasi Goreng

Brewed in Suriname

I went on a tour to the Bakki Plantation, it has a small museum and is run by an enthusiastic Dutch couple. They do not grow anything at this place it is a tourist attraction and worth a visit. Cost 75 Euro.

Bakki Plantation Tour

Temple on the road

The Boat

The Captain

The Plantations

The River 1:15hrs 17.5 km

Welcome

Plantation ahead

Fellow passengers

Village

Another boat

Gates

Museum

Garden

Lunch

Village Mosque

Roadside Stop

The City

Garbage Day

Grand Roopram Roti Restaurant

Posted in Suriname | 2 Comments

Guyana, Georgetown, 29 May – 05 June 2023.

Posted on Monday, 5-June-2023 by Chris Desmond

Trinidad to Guyana on Caribbean Airlines on the Boeing 737-8 or the notorious MAX hahaha was uneventful. There were Passenger Boarding Bridges at both airports so no walking across the tarmac and scrambling up and down stairs in the rain, very civilised. The drive from the airport took 1:30 hrs and cost US$40 by airport taxi. The airport website actually states GY$ 5000 which is US$24 but apparently it is out of date. The taxi driver showed me a photo of one of his 4 children who has Down Syndrome, this is a common tactic used to get a bigger tip hahaha. I got conned into giving a guy in Port of Spain TT$100 to buy a meal for his 4 children, he was entertaining and actually gave me some useful information so I did not mind. 4 children must be a believable number.

Trinidad Airport

Food

The MAX

Heading out

Guyana Big Rivers

Guyana Airport

Guyana is listed as one of the MDC’s (More Developed Countries) as opposed to the LDC’s in CARICOM and it has oil but I did not see any sign of this wealth trickle down to the street. Narrow, pot holed one way streets in the town with cars parked on both sides and on the pavement so the only place to walk is on the street where my arm got wacked by the side mirror of a car driving past making one lane into two lanes. A continuous traffic jam, it took an hour to get out of the town on my way back to the airport in the afternoon and another 45 minutes from there, even the airport road is a disaster. They do have a Natural History museum and a nice walk along the Sea Wall as long as you don’t look down at the rubbish. I booked two tours up river and to the Islands both were cancelled due to insufficient numbers. I did discover a new street food here called Egg Balls which consist of a boiled egg wrapped in spicy mashed casava and deep fried, delicious. They still use horse drawn carts in the town just in case you get bored sitting in traffic. Best of all there is a local Uber called “Book a Ride” no cards only cash. Many Businesses advertise Visa or Mastercard but when you try to pay with a card they say Machine not working hahaha. I did not see any other tourists here though there were three people on the flight who looked like they might work in the oil industry. I bought a SIM card with a 7 day plan for TT$158.

The Post Office

Church closed for renovation

Read the sign

Albert Town Police Station

Chicken and Rice

Chocolate

Old Lighthouse

Hotel

Interesting

Turtle

Guyana

Shiny

Oil

God Rock

Bandstand

Sea Wall

Home Sweet Home with a View

Muddy Delta Water

Food Stalls by the Seawall

1823 Rebellion Memorial

The Beach

Guyana

Chicken and Rice

The Market

Downpour

The Market

Parliament

The Oldest

Courts

Kirk

Supreme Court and Victoria

Church

Inside

Horse and Cart

Street Market

Waterway

Egg Ball – Very Popular

Egg Ball

The Museum

Oil

The most expensive stamp in the world.

Park

Indian Arrival Monument

Indian Arrival Monument

Big Mango tree

Big Mosque

Seventh Day Adventist

Chicken and Indonesian Fried Rice

Giftland Mall

Food Court

Chicken and Chinese Fried Rice

Food Court

Mango

1763 Monument

Art Gallery

Botanical Gardens

Fountain

Burham Mausoleum

The Place of the Seven Ponds

Botanical Gardens

Cricket

Leader of the Opposition

Pan African Garden

Posted in Guyana | Leave a comment

Trinidad and Tobago, Port of Spain, 22 – 28 May 2023.

Posted on Sunday, 28-May-2023 by Chris Desmond

Grenada to Port of Spain, Trinidad – The Grenada customs went through my backpack and even opened my wallet, I would like to know who trains these people. Flight left on time and landed 27 minutes later and another surprise awaits. When I got to Immigration they said I need a visa to enter the country, this was the first I had heard of this as none of my searches said I needed a Visa and neither did Caribbean Airlines which is headquartered in Trinidad and they allowed me to board the aircraft with no questions asked! Anyway it turns out you have to fill in a Visa Waiver form and pay TT$400 or US$67 and they do not accept cards. Therefore I had to be escorted out to an ATM and back to pay the fee, TT$400 is only US$59 not $67. I was the only tourist on the flight. Later I emailed the Immigration Department about this incident and whether I would need a visa when transiting Trinidad in a couple of weeks time. They said that passengers in transit do not need a visa but I will be spending one night at a hotel because my flight is the next day so we will see what happens. They also sent me the Visa forms and it turns out that a visa only costs TT$200 which is half the cost of the Visa Waiver and in order to get a visa you need two Trinidad citizens to vouch for you. How on earth is a tourist going to get two people to vouch for him/her and it takes two weeks to process the application. So basically the majority of tourists will be paying the US$67. That being the case why not just have an Online Application Form like every other country and charge the US$67. The only other country that requires a visa in the Caribbean is Surinam and you apply for it online pay US$33 with your credit card and the visa is granted five minutes later.

Grenada Airport

Inside

Caribbean Airlines ATR 72-600

Grenada

Trinidad

Port of Spain

The airport taxis are regulated and cost around US$35 to the Metro area. The first thing you notice is that this is an actual City with a few tall buildings. It is well developed with good roads, highways, Shopping Malls and even an Uber equivalent called Allridi, very convenient. In addition to the mini busses of the other islands they also have shared taxis that cost TT$6 a ride, they usually run a set route but will deviate for a few TT$ more. The Shared taxis have number plates that start with the letter “H” do not get into a car that does not have the H number plate. The H vehicles are licenced taxis, there are many other cars that are illegal taxis and you risk getting robbed or worse if you get into one of them. This is not a tourist destination, I only saw about 3 other tourists during my whole stay. Apparently all the tourists go to Tobago. All the museums listed on Google Maps are closed except for the Reserve Bank Museum which was very well done. The population is approximately 50:50 of African and Indian descent. They have a China Town with no Chinese or even a Chinese Restaurant hahaha. This countries wealth comes from oil which it exports to the other Caribbean islands.

Chicken, Dhal and Rice

Choc Cake and Pone

The Local Drop

Brian Lara – Cricketer

Independence Square

Art

Central Bank Museum

Read the Comments from School Children

The Bank Boss

Central Bank Museum

Church

Inside

Luxury Cinema

Stretch out

Fort George cost TT$100 Taxi Return

The View from the Fort

Canon

Fort George

Police Station

Police Bile

Woodford Square

The Parliament

Woodford Square

St.James Suburb

Church

Wood construction

Temple by the Sea

Funeral

Temple by the Sea

Hanuman Temple and Temple by the Sea cost TT$400 taxi Return

Hanuman Temple

Meats

Brew Pub

Don’t worry be hoppy

Brewed on the Premises

The Brews

IPA

Inside

Beans

The ZOO

The ZOO – Black Caiman

Caiman

Tapir

Spectacled Caiman

Piping-Guan

Rufous-Vented Chacalaca

Green Winged Macaw

Blue and Yellow Macaw

Mangoes

Orange Ibis

Red Ibis with a light beak

Red Ibis with a dark beak

Flowers

Red-eared Slider

Caribbean Flamingo

Green Monkey

Brown Capuchin

Monkey

Spectacled Owl

BArn Owl

4321 School Children Screaming

Spotted animal

Tiger

G’day mate

Lion

The Falls at Westmall

Art

Chicken and Rice

Mermaid

MovieTowne

Baskin & R

China Town

Dairy Queen

Posted in Trinidad and Tobago | 1 Comment

Grenada, Saint George’s, 18 – 21 May 2023.

Posted on Sunday, 21-May-2023 by Chris Desmond

Saint Vincent to Grenada took all of 26 minutes and we passed over the Grenadine islands, very beautiful. Saint George’s is on a steep hill, there is a Cruise Terminal with a Mall attached and it is the only place out of the heat and humidity with a restaurant and souvenir shops. I went on a minibus ride to Grenville on the other side of the island, walked around, had lunch and back.

St.Vincent Airport

St.Vincent

Sea weed

The Grenadines

The Ferry

Grenada Airport

House of Lords

Guava

chicken and Rice

Chocolate

Cruise Port

The Fort

The Cruise Terminal

IPA

Carib

Church

Chicken and Rice

Church

Chocolate

Fishing

The Fort

The Harbour

Jesus

Tunnel

Inside the Tunnel

Minibus to Grenville

On the way to Grenville

Grenville

The Sea

Fresh Fish

Church

Plantains

Chicken and Rice

Good Food Restaurant

Ching

Grenville Bus Station

The Highway

Blue

Saint George’s Bus Station

Chocolate

Many legs

Posted in Grenada | 1 Comment

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Kingstown, 12 – 17 May 2023.

Posted on Wednesday, 17-May-2023 by Chris Desmond

Dominica to Saint Vincent turned out to be an adventure all by itself hahaha, not funny at the time. This journey was in two parts, first flight to Barbados and then change to another flight from Barbados to St.Vincent, all on the same airline Intercaribbean. I left my Roseau hotel at 10:00 AM then an hours drive over the same narrow winding road to the airport on the other side of the island. When I went to check-in there was some confusion and they said the flight had been delayed and I had to wait and come back later. Anyway after a couple of hours of being told that I would miss my connecting flight and then get it and then would not, they finally issued me with a boarding pass to Barbados along with my luggage and said go to the Intercaribbean desk when you get there and they will sort things out as I was not the only one who was going to miss a connecting flight. They also gave all the passengers a free meal and a drink at the airport. We finally departed at 8:00 PM and arrived in Barbados 45 minutes later. I went straight to the Intercaribbean counter and there were already a few people waiting from other flights, the crowd continued to build and there was only one girl who was having to deal with many irate passengers some of whom had missed flights to Europe. They must have called in more staff and then they started booking hotels for over a hundred stranded passengers. I finally got sent off in a taxi at 00:30 to a hotel that said they did not have a spare room for me, eventually they found one and I got to sleep at 01:30 in Barbados. Free breakfast the next morning and pickup at 12:00 for departure at 02:45 PM, another delayed flight and we departed at 04:40 PM and arrived in St.Vincent at 05:10 PM a 30 minute flight. St.Vincent has just built a new airport that nearly sent the country bankrupt hoping it will increase tourist numbers. There is a taxi despatcher at the airport and the fare is EC$70 for a trip into Kingstown.

Roseau Port

Heading out of Roseau

Wreck

Highest mountain in Dominica

Dominica Airport

Airport Stream

Dominica Check-in

Airport Sunset

Airport Art

Departure Lounge

Gate 1 and Gate 2

Note the Intercaribbean Departure Time and the Current Time

Finally in the Air

Arrive at Barbados

Welcome

Frustrated Passengers

The following Morning

Hotel

Breakfast

Wisdom

Breakfast

Barbados Departure Lounge

Heading out Fingers Crossed

In the Air

Landed in St.Vincent

Saint Vincent – another developing Caribbean country. I hired a taxi for a half day tour of the island EC$250. I also went on a ferry trip to the nearest of the Grenadine islands Bequia, another place to lie on the beach and get sozzled far from the hustle and bustle of the City.

Mangoes everywhere

The Local Drop

Brewed under Licence

Taxi Tours

Old airport runway

Old airport

Leather goods

The Museum

The Courthouse

Catholic Church

Church

The Market

Police Station

Policeman Traffic Light

Taking it easy

Vegetable MArket

The Bequia Ferry EC$45 RTN

Heading out

Bequia

Lunch

Chicken and Rice

Bequia Main street

Church

Bequia

Sozzling place

Heading back

Spot the Resorts

Resort

Back in Town

Frank Worrell – Cricketer

Old Airprot

Volcano Crater

New Airport

Byera Tunnel

Nice view

Tunnel Park

Green

Orange

Yellow

Tunnel

Inside the Tunnel

Tunnel waterfall

The other side blocked by falling rocks

Local Almond

Fresh coconut water EC$2

Dry River until it rains

Small town

New Airport Solar Power

Resort

Island Grave

Chicken and Rice

Posted in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | Leave a comment

Dominica, Roseau, 08 – 11 May 2023

Posted on Thursday, 11-May-2023 by Chris Desmond

Barbados to Roseau – Barbados airport is more like a regular airport but the Check-in is still open air. Once inside the airport it is air-conditioned with duty free shops and a food court. Immigration does not stamp your passport coming in or going out. Another 30 seat Embraer 120 with only about 10 passengers, which this time left about 20 minutes early. Once all the passengers are on the aircraft they leave, as these are not busy airport they do not have to wait for their turn, just go, very refreshing, hahaha. The airport is on the opposite side of the island to the Capital Roseau and you have to cross the mountains in the middle to get there 46 km took 1:10 hrs over some narrow winding roads in the dark and it cost US$80, the most expensive taxi ride so far. I learnt afterwards the fare is EC$200 which works out to US$75.

The currency is back to EC$ and this place is even smaller and poorer than St.Lucia, narrow streets and there are no traffic lights in the whole country of 71,000 people. I bought a Digicel SIM 3 days for EC$15 and for the first time noticed that it is very slow 3G or less. The water is drinkable, there is one big modern supermarket, the Cruise port is tiny and there are beggars hanging around asking for a handout. I did find some very nice craft beer, made in St.Lucia of all places hahaha. There is a small and quite interesting museum entry EC$8 and there is a nice restaurant next door called the Palisades where you can sit on the balcony and sip a Pineapple and Ginger juice.

Dominica Photos

Posted in Dominica | Leave a comment

Barbados, Bridgetown, 03 – 07 May 2023

Posted on Sunday, 7-May-2023 by Chris Desmond

Saint Lucia to Barbados – The Saint Lucia airport has its Check-in located outdoors and when I arrived it started to pour, well at least these guys have a printer for the Boarding Passes and the Luggage tags. Another small aircraft 30 seat Embraer 120, these small aircraft are very convenient, no long queues anywhere and you pick your own seat. Each passenger was escorted to the plane by airport staff carrying an umbrella as it was still raining. Barbados airport is a modern airport and the largest so far. There is a taxi despatcher and the fares are regulated so you will not get ripped off.

Barbados is the most developed and the most expensive island so far with many resorts and independent tourists. They also have organised group tours and all the other conveniences you would expect from a tourist destination. They have many beaches as the island is comparatively flat. I bought a Digicel SIM card 3 days for BB$15 (US$7.50), other islands the same SIM costs US$3.50. Minibus costs BB$3.50 (US$1.75) other islands around $1. They also have big busses but there are not many of them. The water is drinkable another first.

I went for a tour around the island with Williams Tours, professional and organised. There is a Boardwalk along the beach with some art at the end which is very nice. Once again the climate is hot and humid.

Barbados Photos

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Saint Lucia, Castries, 29 April – 02 May 2023

Posted on Tuesday, 2-May-2023 by Chris Desmond

Saint Kitts to Saint Lucia – The flight was scheduled for 0700 hrs and I arrived at the airport at 0500 hrs which is the time it opens. The doors were open but there was nobody around, staff started turning up at around 0520. Checked in and had to pay US$10 for my checked suitcase which should have been paid for but apparently LIAT airlines only takes payment at check-in. I was issued with a hand written boarding pass and baggage label. Immigration next and then Security where the guy opened my backpack and everything in it, he even peered into my coin change purse which is about 2×3 cm hahaha, a complete idiot, he is supposed to be looking for sharp objects and explosives. They did have an x-ray scanner as well. He could only get away with it because there were no other passengers waiting. I read a similar comment online from a woman who had the same experience and objected to the fact that he took her credit cards out of her wallet and examined them and she did not want his germs on them hahaha. There were only about 20 passengers and the aircraft which was a turbo prop ATR 42-600 can hold 50 passengers. There were already a few passengers on board so we were one of its hops. Finally took off at 0740, you soon learn that airline schedules in this area are only guidelines.

I arrived in Basseterre the Capital on a Saturday, on Sunday everything is closed and Monday was a Public Holiday and the only places open were Dominos and KFC so I could at least get something to eat. On Tuesday I did a minibus circuit of the island stopping at a couple of places along the way. This is the poorest island so far, no cruise ships at this time of the year and the cruise terminal was not impressive, very mountainous with a few roads winding through them, tropical jungle and a few beaches with resorts. This is also the first island that I encountered beggars, they just walk up to you and ask for money, sometimes being quite specific. When I was walking into a supermarket one guy said he wanted me to buy him a tin of tuna, bread, and a few other things and he was waiting for me when I came out and asked if I had his shopping hahaha.

I had a very nice modern air-contioned apartment on a cliff with views of the airport and harbour so I did not mind spending my time reading and looking out of the window. The weather as usual was hot and humid. I bought a Flow SIM card 5 days for EC$30. Minibus rides EC$2 for around town, more for longer trips.

Saint Lucia Photos

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Saint Kitts and Nevis, 22 – 28 April 2023

Posted on Friday, 28-April-2023 by Chris Desmond

Antigua to Basseterre, Saint Kitts (officially known as Saint Christopher and Nevis) – the flight was on a large British Airways Boeing 777-200 which travels from Gatwick to St.Kitts with a stop in Antigua. The travelling time from take off in Antigua to landing in St.Kitts was 18 minutes. This is the shortest International flight I have ever been on hahaha. After we landed, the aircraft just stopped on a vacant part of the tarmac and we went down the steps and walked about 400m to the Terminal building, there are no boarding passageways at this airport or busses. Taxi fares are regulated, as you exit the airport there is a Taxi Booth on your right where you book a taxi with a fixed fare depending on where you are going. Once again many of the prices you see are in US$ so always make sure to ask “EC or US” ? as EC$2.7 = US$1.00. I already had EC$ so no need to look for an ATM. I bought a Digicel SIM card 7 days with Data, Calls and SMS for EC$35, so far all the SIM cards I have bought started working within 5 minutes and I never had any problems with them. Similar to Nassau and Antigua public transport is by van or minibus, cost EC$2.50 or US$1.00 a ride. Sunday everything is closed and the minibusses are few and far between.

Depart Antigua

Boeing 777-200

St.Kitts

Walk to the Terminal

Welcome

The Local drop

Pretty

Note the USB charging ports

St.George’s

Main Street

Clock tower and the Museum

The Museum

Steelpan

The Museum

Sinking of the Cristena

Cristena Memorial

Restaurant

Another Local drop

Standard Fare

Inside

Parliament

Babies

Twins

Nice

Inside – Airconditioned

Breakfast

Independence Square

Catholic Cathedral

For Sale

Queen Victoria

The Mall

Inside the Mall

Expansion

Braids for Tourists

Zante Cruise Port

Port Zante

Twins at Port Zante

Drains

Lunch

The View

I visited Nevis by Ferry EC$31 each way, 30 minutes on a fast boat and 40 minutes on a slow one, Ferries leave about every half an hour or when they have enough passengers. Alexander Hamilton, one of the USA’s founding fathers was born on this island and the Museum is located in what was once his house.

900 Horsepower

Cruising at 50 kph

Welcome

Charlestown

Main Street

St.Kitts

Octagon Bar

Lunchtime

The Museum

The Man

The Museum

Scan the QR code

The Museum

One room Museum

Slaves

Alexander Hamilton

Art

Art

Art

Park

Another William

The slow Ferry back 35 kph cruising speed

Inside

A cruise ship arrived.

I tried to find a tour around the St.Kitts but none of them were operating, they need a minimum number of bookings as did the Scenic Railway. Then while I was hanging around Port Zante which is the cruise port a taxi driver showed me a map and said he could take me around the island and show me all the sights for US$80 plus tip (US$15), half a day tour. This is a bargain because exclusive use of a taxi from a tour operator is around $240. We started at 10:00 AM and finished just after 13:00, very interesting especially Fort Brimestone, excellent restoration and the best one I have seen so far on this trip. There are also two Medical Colleges and one Veterinary College on St.Kitts. The Cruise tourists hang around Basseterre which is where the port is located but the Resorts are all around Frigate Bay. Surprisingly there is a population of around 300,000 monkeys on the island.

Veterinary College

Massacre

Caribelle Batik

Methodist Church

Thomas Jefferson’s Ancestor

The View

Brimestone Fort

Monkeys

Brimestone Fort

Flat Cloud

Sandy Point Town

Oranjestad

Brimestone Fort

Cricket at Sandy Point

Brimestone Fort

Big Oven

Brimestone Fort

Jail

Brimestone Fort

The Beginning of the End for the Natives

Massacre at Bloody Point

The Navy

The Army

Breadfruit

Black Volcanic Rocks

Clouds

The View

The Pub

Frigate Bay – Ramada

Timothy Hill Lookout

Salt fish and Coconut Dumplings

Posted in Saint Kitts and Nevis | 6 Comments

Antigua and Barbuda, Saint John’s, 18 – 21 April 2023

Posted on Friday, 21-April-2023 by Chris Desmond

Santo Domingo to St.John’s, Antigua was on a 30 seat Embraer 120 with a stop at Tortola, British Virgin Islands, uneventful with a few bumps, to be expected of a small aircraft. I used Uber to get to the airport and it came to US$21 vs the US$40 using an Airport taxi when I arrived. The Santo Domingo airport is modern with restaurants and money changers. The Antigua airport is small, taxi fare to the town is regulated and US$25, a 10 minute drive, no Uber here. I tried a few ATM’s and they were limited to dispensing a maximum of EC$500 which is less than US$200 until I found the East Caribbean Amalgamated Bank which allowed me to take out EC$2000. It is located on the corner of High Street and Market Street in the heart of the town. The East Caribbean dollar is used by Antigua & Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Kitts & Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent & the Grenadines, Anguilla and Montserrat. These states are all members of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union. Credit cards are widely accepted. I bought a Digicel SIM card for 3 days 5GB plus calls and sms for EC$20.

On the way to Santo Domingo airport

Tolls

Santo Domingo Airport Food Court

Pizza

Embraer 120

30 seats

Islands

Inside

The Cockpit

Landed

This is a small island similar to Nassau but is not as popular with the Cruise ships, I only saw two in the four days I was there. Peak season in the Caribbean is between Christmas and New Year when all the Islands have Carnivals. The port and the area surrounding it has all the shops and restaurants, the rest of the town is well worn. Weather is around 30c and very humid. This island was used to grow sugarcane, no pirates here and English Harbour was Nelson’s port of choice.

There is also a magnificent Cathedral whose exterior is in poor condition but the interior is completely panelled in wood, quite extraordinary.

The local drop

Rice and Beans and Chicken

Paradise Cafe

One Cruise Ship

The Cruise Port

Museum

Past and Present

Saint John’s Cathedral

The Cruise Port

Local drop

The Master

Beauty

VC Bird, National Hero

Market

Bus to Port Nelson/English Harbour

Nelson’s Dockyard

The Museum

Worms

English Harbour

The Navy

Pap Boat

English Harbour

Sailing Regatta

Sleek

Lunch

Bus Station

I went on a day trip to Barbuda on the ferry 90 minutes each way and the fare is US$107 return. It regularly gets demolished by hurricanes, the population is around 1,600 people. It is best known for the Frigate Bird Sanctuary. When you arrive at the Pier in Barbuda there are only a few taxis waiting nothing else. You have to negotiate with them to take you where you want to go on the island. Lucky for me a group of three people saw me looking around and invited me to join them. They had already agreed to pay US$160 and the driver said I could come along for an additional $20. At the end of the trip I wanted to share the cost between the four of us but they refused and I only finished up paying $20. Thank you for inviting me and for your kindness. Having company is always a bonus.